Square Eddie is a Thoroughbred

Thoroughbred

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...

 racehorse

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

 who has competed in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and who is one of the top winterbook favorites for the 2009 Kentucky Derby

Kentucky Derby

The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...

.

Bred by Kinghaven Farms

Kinghaven Farms

Kinghaven Farms is a thoroughbred horse racing stable founded in 1967 by Donald G. "Bud" Willmot. Located in King City, Ontario, north of Toronto, the success of the stable would see it expand to the United States with the acquisition of a farm and training center near Ocala, Florida. Kinghaven...

, he is a son of Forty Gran, a daughter of Northern Dancer's

Northern Dancer

Northern Dancer was a Canadian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and the most successful sire of the 20th Century. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association calls him "one of the most influential sires in Thoroughbred history"....

 son, El Gran Senor

El Gran Senor

El Gran Senor was an American-bred Thoroughbred race horse, foaled at Windfields Farm in Maryland.An outstanding two-year-old who went on to win European classics over a mile and over 12 furlongs, El Gran Senor received a Timeform rated 136...

. He was sired by a son of Mr. Prospector

Mr. Prospector

Mr. Prospector was a thoroughbred racehorse foaled in Kentucky, whose descendants have been dominant in the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. He won half of his 14 career races.-Background:...

, Smart Strike

Smart Strike

Smart Strike is a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse. The son of the Champion sire, Mr. Prospector, and out of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame mare Classy 'n Smart, Smart Strike is a half-brother to 1991 Canadian Triple Crown champion Dance Smartly.Owned and bred by Sam-Son Farm, on the...

, a Leading sire in North America

Leading sire in North America

The list below shows the leading sire of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America for each year since 1830. This is determined by the amount of prizemoney won by the sire's progeny during the year...

 who is the sire of fifty-six stakes winners including 2007 American Horse of the Year Curlin.

As a yearling, Square Eddie was sold to a British buyer for $200,000 at the September Keeneland Sales

Keeneland Sales

The Keeneland Sales is an American Thoroughbred auction house in Lexington, Kentucky founded in 1935 as a nonprofit racing/auction entity on 147 acres of farmland west of Lexington, which had been owned by Jack O. Keene...

. Trained by John Best for owner David Gorton, the colt began racing on the turf

Grass

Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...

 at age two in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. Making his debut on May 19, 2008, at Windsor Racecourse

Windsor Racecourse

Windsor Racecourse, also known as Royal Windsor Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Windsor, Berkshire, England. It is one of only two figure-of-eight courses in the United Kingdom, the other being at Fontwell Park. It abandoned National Hunt jump racing in December 1998,...

, Square Eddie finished dead last in the Weatherbys Bank Conditions Stakes. Entered in the June 17 Group 2

Conditions races

Conditions races are horse races where the weights carried by the runners are laid down by the conditions attached to the race. Weights are allocated according to; the sex of the runners, with female runners carrying less weight than males; the age of the runners, with younger horses receiving...

 Coventry Stakes

Coventry Stakes

The Coventry Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 6 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in June....

, he ran eleventh in a field of eighteen, reportedly coming out of the race with sore shins. In his third start on July 22, under new jockey Steve Drowne

Steve Drowne

Steve Drowne is a professional Flat racing jockey. Growing up, he attended Newmarket Racing School. His father was a Devon farmer.Drowne is one of racing's most respected senior riders. He has a long association with trainer Roger Charlton.- External links :...

, he earned his first win in the Emma Arbery Memorial Maiden Stakes at Salisbury Racecourse

Salisbury Racecourse

Salisbury Racecourse is a flat racecourse in the United Kingdom featuring thoroughbred horse racing. It is located four miles from Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. Fifteen races a year are held here between early May and mid-October...

, then followed up with a close second-place result in the September 6 Sirenia Stakes

Sirenia Stakes

The Sirenia Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to two-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Kempton Park over a distance of 6 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in early September....

 at Kempton Park Racecourse

Kempton Park Racecourse

Kempton Park Racecourse is a horse racing track in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England, which is a western suburb of London 16 miles from the city centre. The site is set in of land....

.

Following his performance in the Sirenia Stakes, Square Eddie was purchased by California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 businessman J. Paul Reddam

J. Paul Reddam

John Paul Reddam B.A. M.A. Ph.D. is a former professor of philosophy at California State University, Los Angeles and a businessman and Thoroughbred racehorse owner.Known by his middle name, J...

, who sent him to Lexington, Kentucky

Lexington, Kentucky

Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...

 to race on the Polytrack synthetic dirt at Keeneland Race Course

Keeneland

Keeneland is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and sales complex in Lexington, Kentucky, USA. Operated by the Keeneland Association, Inc., it is also known for its reference library on the sport, which contains more than 10,000 volumes, an extensive videocassette collection, and a substantial...

. Ridden by Rafael Bejarano, Square Eddie showed an affinity for synthetic dirt, easily winning the Grade 1

Graded stakes race

A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...

 Breeders' Futurity Stakes by 4¾ lengths. After this win, Square Eddie was turned over to trainer American Doug O'Neill and was entered in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile

Breeders' Cup Juvenile

The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships....

 on the synthetic surface at Santa Anita Park

Santa Anita Park

Santa Anita Park is a thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent racing events in the United States during the winter and in spring. With its backdrop of the purple San Gabriel Mountains, it is considered by many as the world's most beautiful race...

. With jockey Rafael Bejarano on board once again, in the Juvenile the colt demonstrated not only his racing ability but his determination. He was running at or near the lead but coming down the stretch dropped back to third behind front-runner Midshipman

Midshipman (horse)

Midshipman is an American Thoroughbred racehorse.Owned by Stonerside Stable and trained by hall of fame trainer Bob Baffert, as a two year old Midshipman won 3 of 4 starts, including the Breeders' Cup Juvenile and Del Mar Futurity.Two weeks before his run in the Breeders Cup, Midshipman was sold...

. Boxed in by the horse running second on the outside, Square Eddie came back to capture second and may have won the race, but Garrett Gomez

Garrett K. Gomez

Garrett Keith Gomez is an American thoroughbred jockey.-Early career:Gomez learned to ride by watching his father, Louie, who was a jockey at many tracks in the Southwest United States...

 aboard winner Midshipman made sure there was no room to get past.

In a December 26, 2008, article on the ESPN

ESPN

Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

 website, award-winning horse racing

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

 writer Bill Finley picked Square Eddie as the number two contender behind Remsen Stakes

Remsen Stakes

The Remsen Stakes is an American Grade II race for Thoroughbred horse race run annually near the end of November at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York...

 winner Old Fashioned

Old Fashioned (horse)

Old Fashioned is an American Thoroughbred racehorse who was one of the top winterbook favorites for the 2009 Kentucky Derby until an injury in April's Arkansas Derby forced him to retire....

 for the first leg of the 2009 U.S. Triple Crown series, the Kentucky Derby. http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/horse/columns/story?columnist=finley_bill&id=3794362

On January 17, 2009, Square Eddie made his three-year-old debut with a second-place finish in the San Rafael Stakes

San Rafael Stakes

The San Rafael Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run at Santa Anita Park, located in Arcadia, California. The race is a Grade III event with a purse of $150,000 and is open to three-year-olds willing to race one mile on the facility's Cushion Track synthetic dirt race track.Prior to...

. http://www.ntra.com/races.aspx?id=36518§ion=races